


Shell Game

by Baklavalamp



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, Gambling, Gen, Get-rich-quick schemes, Kid is homesick, Liz and Patty help, Thompson Style
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:14:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25737868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baklavalamp/pseuds/Baklavalamp
Summary: Liz and Patty use their powers for good- sort of. ATLA AU
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	Shell Game

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short little oneshot I wrote out in my free time. It takes place just before LBFA. Please enjoy!
> 
> Also, I think I mentioned this already, but in case you missed it: I've got a link to a Google Doc on my profile with some art-ish stuff I've done for this AU. It's literally just a few manga panels recolored in MS Paint to show how the characters look here, but I'm pretty happy with how they came out. Go look if you're interested! 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Soul Eater or Avatar: The Last Airbender

The sky is dark by the time Kid, Liz, and Patty pass through the gates of a small Earth Kingdom town, but strings of bright lanterns give the place a warm, friendly air. Patty inhales deeply as they walk, relishing the scent of meat kebabs and fried noodles.

"Ooh, yummy!" she squeals, and gives the young Avatar's sleeve a tug. "Kid, buy me an egg tart!"

"We already have food, Patty," Kid reminds her. They've been careful to ration their supplies these last few weeks, and it's paid off: they're within throwing distance of the Northern Air Temple and still have a week's worth of meals. Not that this means they can afford to go buying things willy-nilly, though; on the contrary, they have so few funds that if Marie's village hadn't stocked them up as well as it had, their little band would be in serious trouble right now.

"Aw, come on!" Patty wheedles. "Just one?"

"We can't afford it," Kid stresses, and Patty deflates. This is the first village they've been through in a while, and she was clearly hoping to make the most of it. He doesn't enjoy stepping on her enthusiasm, but they really do have to be frugal, and egg tarts aren't terribly cheap. Not to mention how risky it is to be here at all, what with Arachnophobia hunting them down. The quicker they can move on, the better.

"I wouldn't say that," Liz muses, and Kid lifts an eyebrow at her. There's a distinct glint in her eye, and he doesn't like it. Patty seems to have noticed as well, and, powerless, Kid watches as Liz kindles a similar light in her sister.

"Are we gonna get some _spending money_?" Patty asks, grinning dangerously.

"Uh-uh, no way," Kid gets between the sisters, sending each of them a stern look. "We've got everything we need already, we don't need to-ah, _supplement_ it." He spares a quick look at their surroundings, fearful of being overheard. Fortunately, the market is fairly busy, and no one is looking at them.

"Yeah, yeah, you're probably right," Liz acquiesces. "Still, even you've gotta admit having spending money would be nice."

"I'm not saying it wouldn't be, I just don't like your way of getting it!"

"You haven't even tried it!" Patty pouts. "And you should. It's really fun!"

"Yes, and I'm sure getting thrown in jail for it would be even more fun, right?"

"Oh, that's only if you get caught," Patty waves him off. Kid massages his temple, trying to soothe the beginnings of a headache. Honestly…

"Why don't we go watch a puppet show instead?" Liz suggests, pointing to a translucent cloth hanging just beyond the food vendors. Behind it, an unseen puppeteer waves paper cut-outs, delighting the crowd gathered there. Patty lights up immediately.

"Puppets!" she cheers, and races ahead to watch. By the time Liz and Kid catch up with her, she's seated on the ground behind a group of younger children, completely entranced.

"We can't stay here all night," Kid reminds Liz as they find their own seats further back. From here, they can just make out the silhouette of a snow rat dancing across the fabric.

"Relax," she tells him, smoothing the fabric of her skirt as she sits. "We'll be gone in an hour, tops." Kid grumbles, but doesn't push the matter further. As wary as he is of getting caught, he's just as glad to be here as they are. Vendors' shouts, drunken singing, and children's laughter fill the air in a way that reminds him painfully of home.

He wonders, idly, as the puppet show goes on, what his father is doing right now. Not that he doesn't think of the man every night, but in a place like this, he feels closer to him somehow. If he closes his eyes and imagines humidity in place of the chill, Kid almost expects his father to materialize from the crowd. _There you are!_ he'd exclaim, a bag of sizzle-crisps in each hand. _C'mon, the firework show's about to start!_

"I thought snow rats were a Water Tribe thing," Liz muses aloud, watching the shadow puppets. "I mean, yeah, I guess we're pretty far north here, but- Kid?" She turns to face the boy and cuts herself off, startled by the tears dripping into his lap. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he mutters, but his voice wavers as he says it. Something clicks in Liz's mind.

"Homesick?" she murmurs, voice uncharacteristically soft. Kid doesn't answer, but the silence speaks for itself. Hesitantly, Liz puts a hand on his shoulder. "You'll be back soon, alright? I mean, you're just a few days away from getting an airbending master! You'll be fully-realized before you know it."

"And if I'm not?" Kid interjects, looking up at Liz with reddened eyes. "He was… you didn't see his face when I left. I've never seen him look like that before. It was like-" he grasps in vain for the words- "like, just... It's been, what, two months now? Almost? And I don't even know if he knows I got off that ship!"

"Well, let's tell him, then!" Liz declares, earning a funny look and a sniffle.

"What do you mean?" Kid asks.

"I mean, let's send him a letter or something! There's gotta be a post office here- use a messenger hawk!"

"Messenger hawk letters are expensive," Kid shakes his head. "We don't have that kind of money." As he wipes his eyes on his sleeve, the look on Liz's face becomes clearer. _Uh-oh_. "I told you before, we can't-"

"I didn't say anything about that!" Liz defends herself, but her grin doesn't fade. "There's more than one way to make a quick buck."

Kid doesn't think he likes the sound of that.

"What do you have in mind?" he asks warily. Liz's grin widens, a predator baring her teeth.

"Ever heard of the shell game?"

* * *

"Hey, you! Yeah, you. You look like you've got a good eye. Think you can beat the shells?"

The hapless passerby- who makes a decent living, if his spectacles are any indication- blinks at the peppy Fire Nation girl shoving her face in his. When Liz had informed her sister of their plan, the younger Thompson had leapt into action, flagging down potential victims for their little confidence trick.

The shell game, Liz had explained as she set it up, is simple: three shells (or, in this case, three cups fished from the trash) are laid out on the ground. One of these shells conceals a copper piece. As the player watches, the dealer shuffles the shells for a moment, then asks the player to pick the shell with the coin under it. If he picks correctly, he gets the copper piece. If not, he pays one. The catch is that with Liz as the dealer, no mortal player stands a chance at winning; at some point during the shuffling, she uses the force of the moving cups to fling the coin into her hand. Then, while the player focuses on the original cup, she slides the coin under a different one.

"Ooh, tough luck," Liz winces, lifting Glasses-Man's chosen cup and finding it empty. Lifting the other two cups, she reveals the coin in its new position. Glasses-Man grumbles, but pays up.

"You two are something else," Kid tells the girls, shaking his head in disappointment and awe in equal measure. He'd been watching that round from his spot against the wall, and the man's choice had been correct. _It's not stealing, technically_ , Liz had argued earlier. _We aren't making them play with us, and they know there's risk involved._ Kid hadn't been convinced, but he also can't argue with the results.

"Years of practice," Liz grins, flipping the coin idly in one hand. Behind her sits a small pouch filled with ones just like it. Speaking of which…

"We probably have enough to send a letter now," Kid points out. As the girls had run their scam, he'd been cramming as much information about their travels as he could onto a single sheet of paper. The result is a strange mix between a status report and the kind of letter you'd expect from a child at camp. It's not exactly poetry, but Kid hopes it will ease his father's mind.

"Oh yeah," Liz says, eyeing the pouch. Reaching behind her, she pours out a large handful of coins. "Here you go."

"You're not coming?"

"I think you can handle it." Kid eyes their setup skeptically. They've already made more than enough, so why continue to risk it? Liz seems to read his mind. "Just a few more rounds and we're done, alright? We'll meet you at the post office." Kid frowns, then sighs.

"Just be careful, alright?"

"Yeah, yeah. Now go send that letter!" She points down the road, and he sets off.

* * *

Watching the messenger hawk take off, bound for his home island, Kid feels a weight in his heart ease. It doesn't lift entirely- he has a feeling it will be with him for however long his town remains inaccessible to him- but it no longer feels quite so oppressive. His father will know he's okay, now. He'll know that Kid will be back someday.

Once the bird has disappeared into the inky night sky, Kid begins the trek back to where Liz and Patty have set up shop. It's not far from the post office, fortunately, so he allows himself to slow down and admire the view as he goes. Snow falls in gentle flakes, the lovely fractals winking out of existence as they meet the cold earth. Dustings of white sparkle at him from where they reflect lamplight atop roofs and food stalls, and for a moment, the world is beautiful.

"Kiiiiiiid!"

And the beauty's gone.

Liz and Patty charge down the road towards him, several angry-looking men on their tail. The girls don't even stop when they reach him, each one just taking an arm and yanking him along. Patty is near-breathless with laughter.

"What in the world-?" Kid demands, struggling to keep up with them.

"Turns out Four-Eyes has some friends," Liz explains, glancing behind them every so often. "Some very cranky friends."

"I told you we shouldn't have tried anything!" Kid groans, putting on a bit more speed.

"Oh, shut up. It worked, didn't it? Now quit whining and _run faster_!"

* * *

"You should've seen their faces!" Patty chortles, leaning heavily against a tree. Liz and Kid aren't much better off, both flushed from exhaustion.

"I can imagine," Kid pants, finally recovered enough to speak. Those men had been persistent, chasing the trio out of town and a few miles down the road. Only when they'd slipped into the forest had their pursuers finally given up.

"Well, that was a workout," Liz declares, face red with exertion. The bag of coins from earlier is nowhere to be seen, probably abandoned in her haste to flee. Although he really shouldn't be, Kid is disappointed; there'd been a fair amount of money in there.

"So, did you do it?" Patty asks, looking at Kid expectantly. It takes him a minute to realize what she's talking about.

"Yes," he assures her. "The letter's on its way."

"So tonight wasn't a total bust, I guess," Liz sighs, getting to her feet. "I might even call it a success."

"Getting chased by an angry mob doesn't disqualify it?" Kid asks, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't think you can really say you've lived until you've been chased by a mob at least once."

"I think we're just going to have to agree to disagree," Kid sighs, but he can't quite keep the smile from his face. Besides, he got what he wanted out of tonight- and maybe had a little fun doing it.

* * *

One week later, on a tiny island in the eastern Fire Nation, a messenger hawk finds purchase on Shinigami's windowsill, clattering down amidst wilted flowers. That same day, Azusa, whose check-ins with the grieving father have become routine, will see him smile for the first time in weeks.


End file.
